thanks all.....gives a new perspective to view from.....some of the ideas you presented are the same as I found exploring online but presented in a different manner that make sense to my situation if you follow me. Low blood sugars due to cutting calories is a great explanation although I have been checked for diabetes before, (not for some time, I admit), but I have been cutting back on calories, not too successfully, if you could see my food tracker, but believe it or not those numbers are definately an improvement. I do eat my share of fiber and more...I work at a care home and of course eat what the residents eat and I do try to be good at home, but for the last few days have been restricted from any red meat in preparation for medical testing, only allowed chicken and fish, so that would addn to the problem. I have always had a tendency to get this way when over hungry. However, it has never been this bad and never been answered medically, but your suggestions make sense when presented as they are and perhaps it will solve itself in a few days, due to the body getting accustomed to fewer calories, even fewer as time goes by, and getting back to some red meat.

those symptoms sound like glucose issues......have your doctor check sugar levels please !!- I had gestational diabetes and those are some of the symptoms I would have!!- Only thing else is that I would start to feel lethargic!! sounds like a spike in your sugar levels--- Im not a doc so definitely check because hunger, thirst, shakiness, and headaces are all symptoms of diabetes!!_ hugs -make sure you balance out your meals/snacks to have protein w/ the carbs!!!-Crystal

The previous posters gave you some great insight, however, with the types of symptoms you are reporting, it may not be a bad idea to pass this along to your doctor just to get his/her take on this issue.

Welcome to Spark People ! As SLIMMERKIWI noted, there are many different reasons you could be hungry.

1) are you eating enough ? Eating too little can hinder a person's weight loss. so, even though you say you eat a full meal, you may not be getting enough calories from that meal for fuel.

2) are you eating foods that are high in fiber ? foods that are high in fiber help keep a person sated/full for longer. that's because it takes longer for the body to digest fiber. as a result of that slow digestion, that helps keep our blood sugar levels stable. studies have shown that the spiking and crashing of blood sugar can cause food cravings. So, if your meals don't have enough fiber, try increasing your fiber intake. how ? eat more fresh fruit and veggies. they're loaded with fiber.

3) are you under any unusual stress ? I'm a firm believer that stress is a neglected aspect of weight gain. If a person could reduce their stress, they'd automatically reduce their waistline. many people who feel overwhelmed or stressed out will turn to food for comfort.

4) bored ? Boredom is a big reason people eat when they aren't really hungry. if you find yourself mindlessly nibbling because you're not busy, then it's time to find a project to keep your mind off food.

5) hormones. yes, fluctuating hormones can cause a person to crave foods when they aren't hungry.

6) thirst. you may be dehydrated. some times hunger isn't really hunger, but thirst. so the next time you feel hungry after a meal, try drinking a couple of big glasses of water. you may really be thirsty.

These are just a few random possibilities. You're going to have to tell us a bit more about yourself and what you eat. the more we know about you, the better we can help. right now, we're just guessing because we don't know anything about you.

Did you suddenly drop the calories down? If you did, this could account for it because you haven't given your body a chance to get used to the change. It happened to me with only a fairly small drop and I had to go back up and drop down in small increments. I would wake in the middle of the night, suffering from nausea. During the day I would shake and get light-headed ..... NOT nice :-(

Are you actually eating ENOUGH - full stop? A lot of people cut right down to 1200 calories give or take, and really, this isn't enough to sustain us - especially when we are mobilizing and need the extra calories.

Do you allow for any snacks? If not, it may be that you need to do this. Factor it into your day's allowance.

Are you getting enough protein and healthy fats? A lot of people need a wee bit more of this because they help with satiety. If you are getting enough fats, then don't increase that because the calories are higher than with protein.

Ensure that you are getting complex carbs from things like whole-grains. They take longer to digest.

Ensure that you are getting plenty of fruit and veges. Eating the skins increases the fibre and also some of the nutrients - they are stronger around the skin and just under.

Are you doing a load of exercise? If this is the case then you will probably need to be increasing your calories.

Hopefully there will be some food for thought, there (s'cuse the pun :-)

I went to peek at your Nutrition Tracker but you don't have a SparkPage. If you create one and have it set so that we can access it, and also look at your Tracker, you will find that you will get a lot better feed-back. (again, s'cuse the pun - LOL!)

I need to know why I am always hungry....I can eat a full meal and in an hour be so hungry I am almost sick to my stomach, with shaky hands and knees and a headache starting...it's driving me crazy and the answers I have found on the net don't fit my situation. Any ideas?

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